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A taste of nostalgia: Links between nostalgia and food consumption

Article  in  Qualitative Market Research · June 2014

DOI: 10.1108/QMR-06-2012-0027

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 A taste of nostalgia: links between nostalgia and food consumption

Food consumption is the one area most likely to take people back into their past. It calls on
different senses, so it can be a valuable vector for nostalgia. The link between nostalgia and
food consumption is almost obvious and yet, very little research work has been conducted so
far on their links (Baker et al., 2005). That is why our paper aims at studying the links
existing between nostalgia and food consumption. We particularly mean to draw possible
parallels between the sociological mechanisms at work in food consumption and in nostalgia
and to study how consumers’ loss of confidence in modern food can be minimized if the
brand, the product or the communication are granted a nostalgic touch.

As part of the research, a first exploratory study was conducted with 300 persons interviewed
on the subject of nostalgic consumption. Out of the 300 answers, over a 100 allude to food
consumption. Thus, a majority of consumers seem to establish a link between nostalgia and
food. We shall see that it goes beyond the «Proust’s little madeleine » effect, that is travelling
back through a product into one’s childhood memories with elation, but also sometimes with
regret or with a bittersweet emotional reaction. What are the main features of the nostalgic
food experience? Could experiencing nostalgia be a valuable vector to reassure consumers
when purchasing? Can we talk about food nostalgia? Our research has many different
objectives.

The first part of our paper will be devoted to elucidate the concepts related to food
consumption and nostalgia. In the second part, we will bring into perspective the contribution
of sociology to food consumption and nostalgia and we will highlight the common features of
food behavior and nostalgia. In a third part, we will present the results of the exploratory
qualitative study, especially those concerning the characterization and typology of nostalgic
food consumption.

1. FOOD CONSUMPTION AND NOSTALGIA : ELUCIDATING THE CONCEPTS

This first part presents and elucidates the concepts used in this research work. Indeed, one
must understand to what extent the current food context is troubled and how nostalgia can be
a relevant concept to comfort consumers in their purchasing and consumption activities as
well as in their everyday life.

1.1 Food consumption: a troubled context

In the last thirty years, food crises have often repeated themselves at a national and
international level. Food and the ensuing risks are of great concern to consumers. According
to a recent survey by the CREDOC on food behaviour and consumption (2011), 85% of the
respondent households think that their food pattern has an impact on their health as against
79% in 2000 and 75% in 1997. So, the problems linked to food hazards have been of great
interest to marketing researchers in the last few years (e.g. Kapferer, 1998; Sirieix, 1999,
Miles and Frewer, 2001, 2003).The latest research work consider food hazard as a vital
consumption hazard, and as a current trend in our western society (Bergadaà et Urien, 2006).

The list of possible threats is long: BSE, the foot and mouth disease, the link between food
patterns and heart diseases… Modern food is a source of deep anxiety; as a result consumers
no longer trust what they eat. The fear of choosing the wrong product triggers an anxiety and
a strong feeling of guilt (Rozin et al., 1999). This feeling of discomfort, anxiety and the loss
of confidence in food products can be accounted for by four main factors (Poulain, 1996):
lack of identification of products, food abundance, contradictory statements and the influence
of the media.

Some nutrients of the agri-food industry arouse suspicion and doubt in the consumers’ minds
whereas traditional and artisanal food is considered as safe. The consumers looking for
authenticity in the origin, in the symbolic dimension and unicity of a product are presented
with a dilemma: convenience and cheap food on the one hand and the fear resulting from the
fact that very little is known on this type of food. As a concept of reassurance, nostalgia and
its impact on consumer behavior deserve closer scrutiny. In the next paragraph, we will
present its main features.

1.2 Nostalgia and food behaviour

The word “nostalgia” originates from the Greek words nostos (homecoming) and algos
(ache); it first described the homesickness caused by geographical distance. The concept has

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long been part of the history of mankind, since it was already mentioned in Biblical books or
in Greek mythology (Homer, the Odyssey).

The first research work about the concept of nostalgia was carried out in the field of medicine
by Hofer (1688). His thesis gives a clinical description of the physical and psychological
symptoms of nostalgia. Gradually, the meaning of the word changed. Today, nostalgia is no
longer considered as a medical disease, but commonly regarded as yearning for yesterday.
This concept has been of interest to marketing researchers for several years (e.g. Holbrook
and Schindler, 1991; Holak and Havlena, 1992). Hence, the definition proposed by several
marketing and psychology researchers, as shown by the synthesis below (table 1: main
definitions of nostalgia). Nostalgia is alternately considered as an emotion, a mood, a
preference, in other words as an emotional reaction.

Table 1: Definitions of nostalgia

Nostalgia is necessary to the human being for different reasons, positive or negative functions.
According to Sedikides, Wildschut and Baden (2004), nostalgia fulfill existential functions
and acts «as a stock of emotions and experiences which people resort to in order to cope with
their existential fears ». Exploring the complexity and richness of the concept of nostalgia can
provide additional tools to better understand consumers and purchasers’ behavior.
As Loveland, Smeeters and Mandel (2010) recall “surprisingly little attention has been paid
to the concept of nostalgia in the consumer behavior literature”. They examine the role of
nostalgic products in satisfying individuals’ need to belong through the consumption of
nostalgic product. As a result, individuals must actually consume a nostalgic product (not
merely be exposed or select the product) to satisfy the belongingness goal.So, if we agree that
nostalgia helps to reassure people, the study of its links with food consumption should be
promising. Food consumption is largely characterized by risk-taking which is more often
subjective than objective. Even if food hazards are objectively less nowadays, the general
public has got the feeling that these hazards are more severe (Kapferer, 1998).Nostalgia can
thus be a reassuring factor for the consumers.

After presenting the troubled context of food consumption and the relevance of studying
nostalgia as a variable affecting consumers’ behaviour, the second part of the paper will study
the links between nostalgia and food consumption from a sociological point of view.

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2. A SOCIOLOGICAL APPROACH OF THE LINKS BETWEEN FOOD
CONSUMPTION AND NOSTALGIA

Many researchers have attempted to understand the psychological and sociological

mechanisms at work within consumers confronted all along their life and several times a day
to feeding necessities. All this fundamental research work (e.g. Aron, 1975; Barthes, 1961;
Bourdieu, 1979; Chiva, 1985; Fischler, 1990) whether in sociology, general anthropology or
anthroposociology, have emphasised the complexity of food activities. All these approaches
are valuable contributions to marketing and consumers’ behaviour research.
Nostalgia can be defined as “a bittersweet emotional reaction, that may be associated to
reflection and experienced by an individual when external or internal stimuli take him back to
an ideal past moment or event belonging or not to his living experience” (Divard et Robert–
Demontrond, 1997). The emotions emerging from an idealised past (features inherent to
nostalgia) are focused on inanimate objects, sounds, odours or tastes that have been
discovered at the very moment the emotions were experienced (Hirsch, 1992). The object that
has been actually discovered or its substitute has the ability to revive emotions. This can be
the case for a food product that has been really consumed or for its substitute (the Bonne
Maman jams for some consumers whose parents or grandparents used to make jams) or for a
product dating back to an idealised past.

One can draw parallels between the sociological functions of food consumption and those of
nostalgia. They share in common a social and cultural function, they contribute to
strengthening self-identity and they are both ambivalent. Even if these «common points »
between nostalgia and food behaviour could also characterise other concepts, it is relevant to
describe the way they converge.

2.1 A social and cultural act

Halbwachs (1912) was one of the first sociologists to analyze meals as “a social institution
playing a fundamental part in socialising and transmitting the norms and values of social
groups”. Similarly, nostalgia regenerates and sustains a whole sense of cultural meanings: this
function is fulfilled by identifying and supporting a common cultural worldview (Sedikides et
al., 2005). Both nostalgia and food practices tend to increase people’s feeling of belonging to
a culture (Baumeister et Leary, 1995; Loveland et al., 2010). Remembering people who were

4
a meaningful part of our past strengthens our feeling of belonging to a social group and
invigorates connectedness within the group.

Nostalgia establishes a symbolic connection with people or events from the past and
consumption objects are significant evidence of the past (Belk, 1991), even if the past is
experienced indirectly (Stern, 1992).These consumption objects, such as family recipes or
specific food products, can stir up nostalgic emotions and memories. Baker et al. (2005) have
described the nostalgic responses and associations related to various consumers’ favourite
recipes. The results show that these recipes are associated with rituals performed on feast
days, significant events, birthdays, new seasons or recovering from illnesses. Recipes
contribute to structuring families and support the intergenerational transmission of the know-
how.
After demonstrating that nostalgia and food practices are social and cultural acts, we are going
to explain to what extent these two concepts contribute to the attainment of identity. Nostalgia
strengthens and augments selfhood: it reduces sources of uncertainty, increases one’s ability
to deal with the present and restores self-worth by resorting, at least momentarily, to an
idealised past (Kleiner, 1977; Kaplan, 1987; Loveland et al., 2010).

2.2 Identity Attainment

Quite consistently with the part played by nostalgia in the attainment of identity, Baker et al.
(2005) show that family recipes are packed with many elements of selfhood. Favourite recipes
are often related to happy or intense childhood memories, such as birthdays or time spent with
people they loved. A food activity or a mere cooking smell stirs up memories and creates
nostalgic associations. Just like these dear objects either owned or inherited (Curasi, 1999;
Price et al., 2000), recipes are left to the people we love, hoping they will also love them and
will be reminded of special moments.

Nostalgic links and memories can be conveyed by food practices, whose symbolic function
contributes to shaping families, increasing intergenerational links, strengthening selfhood or
transmitting rituals. Food practices help bring back memories and past experiences through
nostalgic bonds conveying the memory of people, places or events. Kessous and Roux (2008)
point out that food products are particularly likely to stir nostalgic remembrances, especially
from one’s childhood.

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A further feature shared by both nostalgia and food consumption can account for their
similarity, that is the ambivalence existing between their positive and negative aspects.

2.3 Ambivalence

The consumers’ complex behaviour concerning food may be characterized by three

ambivalent attitudes when eating, as described by Beardsworth (1995): ambivalent pleasure-
displeasure approach, ambivalent health-disease approach, and life-death approach. The
ambivalent pleasure-displeasure approach relies on taste-distaste. Indeed, eating can be a
source of pleasure and joy, but may also cause distaste to the extent of vomiting. Poulain
(2002) considers that “this ambivalence accounts for the fact that food may be both a source
of content and intense sensual pleasure but may also cause a range of unpleasant sensations,
from mere unpleasantness to revolting disgust responsible for sickness, and even vomiting.
So, anxiety has a sensory and hedonistic component”.
Similarly, nostalgia is a bitter-sweet emotional reaction which can stir sadness or yearning as
well as joy and solace. Hence depending on the occasion, this reaction can be positive or
negative or both at the same time. Nostalgia is considered as a bittersweet emotion and as
Dickinson and Erben (2006) remind it: “Below the surface of the idealized memory of
nostalgia there may be hidden conflicts, a point that may explain some of “the bitter”
component of nostalgia”.

The second part of our paper has emphasized the common points between food consumption
and nostalgia from a theoretical point of view. The following exploratory qualitative study
will definitely confirm the part played by nostalgia in food consumption.

3. EXPLORATORY QUALITATIVE STUDY OF NOSTALGIC FOOD

CONSUMPTION ACTIVITIES

A qualitative study of the influence of nostalgia on consumer behavior has been performed.
Three hundred interviewees aged 16 to 84, half males, half females have been asked to
complete a self-administered questionnaire. This large sample of respondents is chosen to
collect a maximum of nostalgic experiences (question 1) and more precisely nostalgic
consumption (question 2). The respondents had to answer the following two questions with as
many details as possible:

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 1. Describe a situation in which you have experienced nostalgia and describe all the
emotions you have felt on this occasion
2. Describe a nostalgic situation associated with a consumption activity and all the
related emotions you have experienced

We have tried to better understand individual perception, the situations and the emotions
related to nostalgia as well as the recurring nostalgic consumption activities. Out of the 224
descriptions of nostalgic consumptions, approximately half of them (46%) deal with food
consumption. In the next paragraph, we are going to describe the themes mentioned by the
respondents and we are going to illustrate them with verbatim. In order to help analyse the
qualitative data, we have used a computer-assisted analysis NVivo 2.0. The 104 descriptions
were analyzed by three judges who had to code the set of descriptions and decide in which
category (or themes) the description belongs. The use of multiple judges provides consistency
across categorization of the 104 descriptions. The coding process has been done with Nvivo
and coding comparisons are identical in 92% of every case. When researchers did not agree
on the coding, we discussed the best way to code it.

3.1 Themes characterizing nostalgic food consumption

The analysis of the results has pointed to six main themes:

- Food products related to childhood;
- Yearning for products;
- Substitute products;
- Products related to homesickness;
- Products for special occasions;
- Rediscovering products;
Nearly half of these food consumption activities involve food products related to childhood.
For instance, Patrice (32 years old) said «In a supermarket, I came across the Balisto
chocolate bars that used to be my snack when in primary school. They are sweet memories of
innocence and relying on my parents. », or Céline (28 years old) «Upon seeing marshmallows
in a supermarket, I felt a mixture of joy and sadness ». These memories may also convey time
spent in the family, more particularly with the mother or the grandmother. Martine (35 Years
old) remembers: «While I was purchasing a pack of biscuits, I stopped in front of the Lu
strawberry cookies, because these were what my mother used to give me for my tea. I felt both

7
joy and yearning». Similarly, Claire (22 years old) is aware of her nostalgic purchasing
behaviour: «Whenever I buy some Benco, it reminds me of my childhood, when my mother
would give us, my cousin and I, bread with butter and Benco, that we would eat under the
veranda while playing cards. What I feel is a mixture of comfort, happiness, but at the same
time of yearning for this time gone past ». The respondents’ accounts clearly show the
importance of rituals in nostalgic food consumption. These rituals imply a common place, a
precise time and the presence of people around (family or friends). This first result is
consistent with the results concerning the importance of childhood memories in nostalgic
reminiscence (e.g. Kessous and Roux, 2008).

Next comes the yearning for products which are no longer available or whose production has
changed. This feeling is mostly found with people over 60 who think that things were better
before: François (67 years old) points out «You no longer find our childhood sweets, which
makes me feel nostalgic, it was better before », Maurice (75 years old) says: «When I buy
tomatoes, I really yearn for those you could find 30 years ago. They were juicy fruit that you
could eat just like that. I really feel sad, but also angry because today no product is genuine,
everything is artificially redesigned». All these people are yearning for their past, which
corresponds to the bitter dimension of nostalgia. This finding is in line with Davis’ view
(1979) who considers that elderly people find solace in the past to get comfort from their
shrinking prospects.

Other people very well know that the products consumed are just copies of what they used to
have; still, they remind them of happy times. These products act as substitutes filling a gap,
which is consistent with nostalgia serving the function of filling an emotional or existential
gap in the face of imminent threat (Routledge et al., 2006; Wildschut et al., 2006) and with
the idea that “individuals consume nostalgic products when the need to belong is a real-event
goal, even when there is no explicit threat to belonging and no negative affect is experienced”
(Loveland et al., 2010). Sometimes, these substitutes replace products that people can no
longer have because the person who used to prepare or cook them has gone away or are
deceased. As Frederic reminds (28 years old) «I always feel nostalgic when I buy some Bonne
Maman jam because it reminds me of my mother who used to give us bread with jam and we
were always in such a hurry that we couldn’t wait to sit down to eat them. Happy because the
memory made me smile but also sad because my mother no longer prepares my breakfast ».
Daniel (37 years old) declares: «Whenever I have some frozen moussaka, it always reminds

8
me of the dish my mother and aunt used to cook, but it has nothing to do with theirs. I sadly
miss the people who are no longer there ». We are dealing here with the nostalgia for family,
family recipes and time spend with family rather than for brand products.

Although nostalgia is mainly caused by time elapsing (Divard and Robert-Demontrond,

1997), it may also be due to homesickness. Some respondents who have left their homeland
feel nostalgia because they cannot find in their host country the products of their country of
origin. Soraya (20 years old) explains: «I am from Morocco, I go back to my parents’ once a
year, but in the meantime in France, I keep buying Garbit couscous, even if it is not very
trendy. It comforts me while waiting to go back ». Yves (49 years old) wrote: «When I was
living in the USA, I would sometimes go to a bakery which sold croissants, which was not
very common over there. It reminded me of the good French bakeries and I would always feel
both happy and proud. ». These nostalgic recollections are quite similar to nostalgia as
defined by Hofer (1688) who considered it caused by homesickness. In those cases,
respondents try to restore a sense of social connections from their past (Derrick et al., 2009;
Loveland et al., 2010).

Some products are consumed on special occasions. As an example, the respondents mention
the products they have on feast days or on special occasions, just like what René (78 years
old): «The “pain au chocolat” was only bought on one special occasion, which was the
annual visit to the eye specialist in Paris with my parents; it was exceptional and that brought
intense pleasure ». These scarce moments are engraved in people’s minds and can be
idealized in their autobiographic memory but they are always associated with intense and
highly emotional occasions, triggering precise recollections such as the date, the name of the
persons attending the event or the emotions experienced (Baker et al., 2005).

Lastly, some respondents associate the nostalgic experience with a food product that they had
not had for long and that they rediscover. Just like Laurent (29 years old): «Indeed! When, as
an adolescent, I discovered that my childhood cookies were no longer sold, I felt so sad! And
yet, now they’re back into the shops, these Quaddro biscuits that my Dad used to buy me
when I was in nursery school. It made me feel both nostalgic and happy as it reminded me of
my childhood. I have bought some, I really felt like having some again ». Rediscovering a
product long forgotten makes it easier for the consumers to buy it because they are willing to
recreate the emotions experienced in the past and their associated memories (Sierra and

9
McQuitty, 2007). Juliette (27 years old) says «I was looking for sweets for my nephew when I
came across some of the sweets I used to eat as a child and which I had not seen ever since. I
thought those Frizzy Panzy lollipops that looked like tongues that you would dip into a bitter
kind of powder were no longer for sale. I was overwhelmed with a feeling of well-being, from
so far away, I could almost feel the taste. I bought two right away, one for me, one for my
nephew ».These answers definitely support the empirical study by Sierra and McQuitty (2007)
who investigate the determinants of nostalgic purchasing acts. Their results show that
nostalgic consumption practices are influenced by an attraction for the past and a specific
attitude in this respect.

Nostalgic food consumption activities described by the respondents involve branded products
(38%) and unbranded products (62%) to a larger extent. People can travel back into the past
thanks to unbranded products attached to some period of their childhood, for instance home-
made cakes and pies but even pasta that are closely related to personal moments (Baker et al.,
2005).
The design of the product more than its taste seems to evoke a feeling of nostalgia which once
more triggers the will to buy or the purchasing act itself: «Banania re-marketed in limited
numbers the original metal box of my childhood, which stirred up the memory of the
chocolate my mother would give me and some yearning for time that flies so quickly, that
time, long ago, when I used to live at my parents’» (Gregory, 30 years old). In some other
cases, a long-lasting packaging will trigger the purchasing act much more readily than a
revamping of the initial packaging: «One of my childhood products has kept almost the same
packaging, symbols, colours and logos: the Nestlé milky sweets. I sometimes buy some, just to
taste back childhood flavours. It’s such an enjoyable feeling of being comfortable and safe »
(Fabrice, 25 years old). These two elements, back to original packaging or long-lasting
characteristics may well reassure consumers. After defining the themes inherent to food
nostalgia, we are going to review the different types of food nostalgia referred to in our
research as well as described in literature.

3.2 Typology of food nostalgia

Through the respondents’ answers, three different types of food nostalgia, in-keeping with the
definition of nostalgia, emerge. All researchers agree on a definition of nostalgia as being an
ambivalent emotional reaction (Belleli, 1991; Holbrook et Schindler, 1991; Batcho, 1995 ;
Divard et Robert-Demontrond, 1997). Indeed, nostalgia may be defined as a sweet, bitter or

10
bittersweet emotional reaction. Through nostalgia, people may travel back to some specific
past time and their feeling of nostalgia may trigger emotions or feelings experienced then. The
respondents’ answers have been encoded into three categories and defined as:
- Positive food nostalgia (sweet): a food product is linked to positive memories and to
emotional reactions such as joy, happiness, comfort or peacefulness
- Negative food nostalgia (bitter); a food product is linked to negative memories and to
emotional reactions such as regret, sadness or even anger.
- Ambivalent food nostalgia (bittersweet): a food product is linked to both positive and
negative memories, emotional reactions are ambivalent and imply contradictory emotions
such as joy and sadness.

Most answers belong to the positive food nostalgia (51%) class. The products mentioned are
products that people have not consumed for long, sometimes since childhood and which
evoke happy moments. Most of the time, people have bought these products again to travel
back into their memories. Sweets, biscuits, cakes, jam are the most often quoted products
whatever the age of the respondents. Sweet food is associated to the sweet pleasures of
childhood. To a lesser extent, some salted products are quoted, mainly by elderly respondents
or in connection with homesickness. This result differs from prior research (Koneke, 2010;
Wildschut et al., 2006) suggesting that nostalgia is rather a negative or ambivalent emotion.
In decreasing order of importance, food consumption linked to ambivalent food nostalgia
comes next (33%). Products recall nice memories but are kind of blurred with a feeling of
sadness or regret because those times are over.
«I always feel nostalgic when I buy some Bonne Maman jam because it reminds me of my
mother who used to give us bread with jam and we were always in such a hurry that we
couldn’t wait to sit down to eat them. Happy because the memory made me smile, but also sad
because my mother no longer prepares my breakfast » (Nawel, 27 years old). This ambivalent
nostalgia is similar to what Batcho (1995) has reported in her work, that is a lack, something
missing vis-à-vis people, feelings or objects. Lack has thus been described as being part of
ambivalent nostalgia, for instance «When I went into a sweetshop, I found those chewing-gum
tubes that I hadn’t seen for so long. It reminded me of nursery and primary school where you
had to share them with all our friends. I was happy and at the same time I missed the simple
pleasures of my generation» (Carole, 30 years old). These answers clearly illustrate the
bittersweet feature of ambivalent food nostalgia.

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Lastly, negative food nostalgia (16%) when people evoke the yearning for a product or a
brand no longer available or produced in a different manner. This feeling is linked to yearning
for savors of yore and also to distaste for current products. Reactions can be very strong. «I
am nostalgic of the taste of the old «flan » When I eat one today, I feel disgusted, fed up
because it no longer tastes the same » (Denis, 65 years old). The food products, even if
they’ve been enjoyed in the past, can no longer be seen in a positive light because they are
associated to people who are no longer present or a too distant past.

GENERAL DISCUSSION
This research highlights the significant part played by the concept of nostalgia in food
consumption. This close bond between food and nostalgia can be accounted for by two
factors. First of all, food consumption addresses our five senses, and more particularly the
senses of smell and taste which imprint the consumers’ mind with strong memories, hence
their bond with nostalgia. According to Hirsch (1992), the sense of smell has the deepest
imprint. On the other hand, eating is a complex social act and consumers who, today, lack
traditional landmarks can be troubled by the great number of food crises. Many researchers
stress that nostalgia contributes to people’s feeling of safety, as a food product which has
already been consumed and is associated with positive memories reduces consumers’ risk-
taking experience (Hirsch, 1992; Stern, 1992; Baker and Kennedy, 1994; Holbrook and
Schindler, 2003).

Concerning theoretical contributions, this first exploratory work characterises nostalgic food
consumption through six themes: childhood, yearning, substitution, homesickness, special
occasions and rediscovery. These themes are brought to light for the first in a research.
Besides, three types of food nostalgia consumption emerge: positive, negative and ambivalent
nostalgia. Respondents mostly express positive nostalgia compared to previous research
suggesting that nostalgia is rather ambivalent or negative (Koneke, 2010; Wildschut et al.,
2006). Hence, the food processing industry should definitely rely on positive nostalgia to
promote their products. This finding is also consistent with the theory of emotional transfer
according to which the advertising content may influence consumers’ behavior concerning the
brand, the product and purchasing intention (Bettman, 1979; Stayman and Aaker, 1998;
Muehling and Sprott, 2004). Finally, a product which has remained the same throughout its
life cycle can be an indication of consumers’ long-lasting preferences. And childhood

12
memories will most certainly be used for a better understanding of what brands mean to the
consumers and the way they relate to them (Braun-LaTour et al., 2007).

Our findings also suggest some managerial implications. In the field of communication
strategies, one or several themes characterising food nostalgia can be used to promote
products. The use of childhood, happy family times and of intergenerational transmission is
particularly suitable for the communication strategies of food brands. Communication can
support the notion of intergenerational transmission of «good products » by emphasizing the
nostalgic touch related to childhood. Our findings also offer the idea that brands that were
present during the consumers’ childhood will be remembered and are of particular attraction
to them. When companies decide to resuscitate a brand, marketing managers should
determine which brand is iconic enough to propose the brand on the market. When it comes to
the design of products and packaging, consumers pay a particular attention to products and
packaging which last over time and thus act as reassuring landmarks. Therefore, brands
should be very careful when it comes to logo or packaging changes. The brand failure of the
New Coke during the 80’s is an example of the power of a product beyond taste or packaging.

Yet, this preliminary research work has some limitations which may due to the fact that the
qualitative exploratory study may have failed to identify all the features characterizing food
nostalgia despite the diversity and size of our sample. Conducting a larger scale study and
checking whether its results substantiate our preliminary comments and conclusions opens
new avenues for future qualitative and quantitative research.

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 Authors Affects Definition

Melancholia created by an object, an image, a smell or a

Belk (1990) Mood
melody
Preference (general liking, positive attitude, or favorable
affect) towards objects (people, places or things) that were
Holbrook et
Preference more common (popular, fashionable, or widely circulated)
Schindler (1991)
in the past (in early adulthood, in adolescence, in
childhood, or even before birth)
Two-sided emotions On the one hand, an emotion
triggered by both yearning and absence, from which
Ambivalent springs our awareness that what we have loved (people,
Belleli (1991)
Emotion1 places…) is out of reach. On the other, an emotion initiated
by memory: what has been lost can be re-experienced
through memories.
Emotional Emotional state characterised by individual yearning for an
Stern (1992)
State idealised or soothed past.
Nostalgia is a bittersweet emotional reaction, that may be
Divard and
Ambivalent associated to reflection and experienced by an individual
Robert-
emotional when external or internal stimuli take him back to an ideal
Demontrond
reaction past moment or event belonging or not to his living
(1997)
experience.
Yearning for the past or a fondness for tangible and
Sierra and intangible possessions and activities linked with the past,
Emotion
McQuitty (2007) and is experienced when individuals feel separated from an
era to which they are attached
Table 1: Definitions of nostalgia

1
Belleli specifies that the word « emotion » is used in its meaning of emotional reaction.

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